Model Who Spent £10K Hiding Her Facial Birthmark Goes Make-Up Free To Inspire Others
Model Celina Leroy has posed make-up free for the first time in two decades to inspire others to embrace their true selves. [Photo: Instagram/celinal3roy]
Celina was about to start the grueling make-up routine she performed every day in a painstaking attempt to cover the facial birthmark she was born with. But catching sight of herself in the mirror she decided that she wasn’t going to get out the cover up that day. Because the port wine stain birthmark she’d spent £10,000 trying to hide was actually part of who she was and it was time to embrace the real her.
Celina Leroy from Brooklyn, New York was born with a large port wine stain covering her chin, lips and cheek. At school the 24-year-old model and actress was teased mercilessly about the birthmark, with one classmate telling her she’d never be popular because of the mark.
Celina has spent years covering her facial birthmark [Photo: Instagram/celinal3roy]
In a bid to stop the cruel taunts and blend in with her friends Celina underwent a series of 40 painful laser treatments to hide her pigmentation costing upwards of £10,000. But now, for the first time in two decades, Celina has decided to embrace the unusual mark, choosing to pose make-up free for the very first time.
“I put all this money and effort into treatments to make it go away but since I’ve stopped wearing make-up everyone’s been really supportive,” she explained.
“I’ve spent around $15,000 (around £10,000) on surgery and treatment so I could make it look like I didn’t have a birthmark, but now I don’t want to hide it and am proud of it.”
High beauty standards meant Celina felt pressured to keep her birthmark covered [Photo: Instagram/celinal3roy]
Celina was just a baby when she had her first laser surgery to reduce the appearance of her birthmark. Though she never wanted to hide the mark herself, as she got older she felt like she had to in order to compete with high beauty standards and follow her dreams of becoming a model and actress.
“I gave my photos to one modelling agent who told me I should cover my birthmark if I wanted to get jobs, but I don’t personally think I have anything to hide,” she says.
Ditching the cover-up. Celina now feels confident enough to pose make-up free [Photo: Instagram/celinal3roy]
Celina says that growing up she would have benefitted from having someone in the public eye who had a birthmark to look up to, so now she’s hoping to be a role-model to youngsters who have facial pigmentations.
"Now I want to be that role-model and show others they have nothing to hide by being more open about my birthmark and celebrating having one.”
And ditching the cover-up to go make-up free has helped boost Celina’s body confidence.
“I feel great now, my birthmark is who I am and I think it makes me stand out from other people, I’m no longer ashamed.”
“Now I can be the real Celina,” she added.
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